Comprehensive Notes – Buusaa Gonofaa Oromia (2017 Report & 2018 Plan)

1. Historical Background & Rationale
  • Buusaa Gonofaa = traditional Oromo mutual-aid practice institutionalised by the Oromia Regional State.
  • Legal basis:
    • Proclamation 244/2014244/2014 – establishes the scheme.
    • Regulation 235/2015235/2015 and Directive 3/20153/2015 – operational rules.
  • Philosophy: “Beyond Aid!” → shift from chronic relief-dependence to self-reliant productivity.
  • Alignment with regional vision: build a competitive economy rooted in Gadaa values, culture of solidarity, and indigenous knowledge.
2. Core Purposes
  • Revive & cultivate community self-help culture.
  • Produce a generation that values:
    • Giving & volunteerism.
    • Savings habit.
    • Social compassion.
  • Mobilise knowledge, labour, experience & resources to:
    • Rescue people exposed to natural/man-made shocks.
    • Rehabilitate & help them rebuild livelihoods.
3. Guiding Principles
  • Impartial humanitarian action: no discrimination by ethnicity, gender, faith, politics, etc.
  • Community-centred, culture-sensitive service delivery.
  • Cooperation with all governmental & non-governmental actors.
  • Strict respect for regional, federal & international laws.
4. Organisational Architecture
  • Four tiers:
    • Region-wide Buusaa Gonofaa Council (Yaa’i Waliigalaa).
    • Zonal/City “Gaaddisa” coordinating bodies.
    • Woreda/Aanaa offices.
    • Kebele/Ganda committees & volunteers.
  • Support arms: Focal persons, community volunteers, and sectoral taskforces.
5. Forms of Contribution (‘‘Gumaata’’)
  1. Cash.
  2. In-kind (food, livestock, materials).
  3. Service / labour.
  • Contributors: individuals, age-sets (sirna gadaa), professional guilds, private sector, CSOs, diaspora.
6. Membership Eligibility
  • Any person ≥ 9 yrs (“Gaammee xiqqaa”) fulfilling at least one of:
    • Pay membership due.
    • Provide labour/service.
  • Institutions (public, private, CSO) may also enrol.
7. Revenue Streams for the BG Fund
  • Regional budget allotment.
  • Members’ dues (‘‘Buusii’’).
  • Domestic & overseas donations.
  • Income-generating projects.
  • Return on movable & immovable BG assets.
8. Fund Administration Ratio (Reg. 235/2015235/2015, Art. 28)
  • Cash collected at Woreda/Medium-town level: 10%10\% kept locally, 10%10\% to zone, 80%80\% to region.
  • At Zone/Large-city level: 10%10\% zone, 90%90\% region.
  • For in-kind: slightly different 10%/5%/85%10\%/5\%/85\% allocation.
9. “Self-Reliance” Narrative (Yaad-Rimee Birmadummaa)
  • Africa’s colonial past → dependency mentality.
  • External humanitarian aid can undermine sovereignty.
  • Oromia chooses to emulate ancestors’ struggle for freedom by replacing aid with local strength.
10. 2017 Key Deliverables
  1. Awareness campaigns (‘Road-Map’: Agree → Purify → Prepare → Integrate → Graduate).
    • Leaders briefed: 229 171229\,171.
    • Community sensitised: 34 644 70434\,644\,704.
  2. Misconception correction dialogues with 2 760 3922\,760\,392 aid-recipients.
  3. Establishment of BG General Assembly from kebele to region.
  4. Member mobilisation:
    • Target 6 093 6936\,093\,693; achieved 6 368 1146\,368\,114 ( 104.5%104.5\% ).
  5. Membership dues (cash) 2015-17:
    • 2015 = 1.006  billion Qr1.006\,\text{ billion }Qr.
    • 2016 = 296.0  million Qr296.0\,\text{ million }Qr.
    • 2017 = 2.031  billion Qr2.031\,\text{ billion }Qr ( 67%67\% of plan).
  6. Additional community contribution (“Gumaata”):
    • 2017 plan 2.567  billion Qr2.567\,\text{ billion }Qr → realised 1.317  billion Qr1.317\,\text{ billion }Qr ( 51%51\% ).
  7. School feeding grains collected 2017: Plan=3,069,982 qt;  Actual=2,744,099 qt  (89%).\text{Plan}=3,069,982\,\text{qt};\;\text{Actual}=2,744,099\,\text{qt}\; (89\%).
  8. Combined asset value mobilised (cash + food): Qr 17.066  billionQr\,17.066\,\text{ billion}.
11. Geographic Performance Snapshots
  • Best dues collection (\ge90%90\% of target): Arsi, East Hararghe, Shaggar, Adama, Robe, Holota.
  • Lowest (<30%30\%): Guji, West Wallaga, Bule Hora town, etc.
12. Graduation & Cleaning (‘Qulqulleessuu’) of Beneficiary Lists
  • Initial verified caseload: 2,988,9882,988,988.
  • Through re-screening & market-linkage: 584,062→221,000584,062\rightarrow221,000 still need aid.
  • Seftinet (PSNP) clients cleaned: none left on list.
13. Preparedness & Investment Pillars

A. Food-crop reserve & production
• Farm land set aside for BG agriculture 2016–17: Hek 43,851Hek\,43,851 plan → 26,02526,025 allocated ( 54.5%54.5\% ), 8,8088,808 cultivated, yield 13,214 qt13,214\,\text{qt}.
• 2017–18 new plan: Hek 43,581Hek\,43,581 → only Hek 13,593Hek\,13,593 ( 31%31\% ) demarcated so far.
B. School-compound farming: need Hek 122,771Hek\,122,771, only 17%17\% identified & 6%6\% ploughed.
C. Bale-East flagship investment: Hek 808Hek\,808 farm → 9,368 qt9,368\,\text{qt} grain harvested.
D. Future target: invest on Hek 10,000Hek\,10,000 with tractors, irrigation & agro-processing.

14. Warehouse Infrastructure Standards
  • Regional depot: capacity ≈50,000 MT\approx50,000\,\text{MT}.
  • Zonal: 4,300 MT4,300\,\text{MT} ((25\times72.9\,\text{m}, h=6\,\text{m})).
  • Woreda: 350 MT350\,\text{MT} ((9.3\times19.9\,h=5)).
  • Kebele: 50 MT50\,\text{MT} + non-food shed for 235235 kit.
  • 125 new stores planned (total capacity 10,000 MT10,000\,\text{MT}); 13 regional-level depots identified.
15. Disaster Risk Management (DRM)
  • Ethiopia prone to drought, flood, conflict, epidemics; these threaten:
    • Sovereignty, development projects, food security, lives, infrastructure.
  • Preventive spending ratio: 11 invested in DRR saves 4–104–10 in response (WB/UNDRR).
  • Actions: hazard profiling for every woreda, early-warning integration of meteorology, agriculture, health & security data, mainstreaming DRM in sector plans.
16. Humanitarian Operations
  • 2017 total aid need estimate: Qr 26.129  billionQr\,26.129\,\text{ billion}.
  • Covered from:
    • Federal: 440,493 qt440,493\,\text{qt} grain.
    • JEOP NGOs: 154,815 qt154,815\,\text{qt} + Qr 579.2 MQr\,579.2\,\text{M}.
    • BG: 48,309 qt48,309\,\text{qt}.
  • Solidarity exports outside Oromia: 45,000 qt45,000\,\text{qt} grain to Tigray, Afar, Amhara, Konso, Gofa (value Qr 200.18 MQr\,200.18\,\text{M}).
17. Integration (‘Qindeessuu’) & Graduation (‘Ceesisuu’)
  • PSNP participants linked to livelihood schemes:
    • Crop intensification: 73,57373,573 HHs.
    • Livestock: 123,301123,301 HHs.
    • Horticulture: 18,84018,840 HHs.
    • Urban PSNP: 17,10417,104 HHs joined SMEs.
  • IDPs: 917,511917,511 people, of whom 864,104864,104 returned; rehabilitation assistance worth Qr 611.76 MQr\,611.76\,\text{M} provided to 33,54333,543 HHs.
18. Financial Utilisation
  • 2017 BG budget disbursements:
    • Agricultural investment Qr 118.18 MQr\,118.18\,\text{M}.
    • 15 tractors Qr 134.79 MQr\,134.79\,\text{M} + insurance Qr 0.76 MQr\,0.76\,\text{M}.
    • Shashamane warehouse renovation Qr 23.95 MQr\,23.95\,\text{M}.
    • Office buildings refurbishment Qr 2.21 MQr\,2.21\,\text{M}.
    • Total spent Qr 284.51 MQr\,284.51\,\text{M}.
19. Achievements vs Gaps

Strengths

  • High public acceptance; leadership buy-in.
  • Demonstrated mobilisation capacity (\$17 bn equivalent).
  • Initial success in self-production & warehouse building.
    Weaknesses
  • Poor quality beneficiary & member databases (not digital).
  • Revenue leakage & illegal practices (undervalued livestock sales, coercive collection).
  • Non-standard storage, logistics shortages.
  • Agricultural land issues: security, remoteness, unsuitable soils, tenure disputes.
  • School-farm directive not yet embraced.
20. Strategic Directions (2018 onward)
  1. Governance & Transparency
    • Audit all BG revenues/expenditures.
    • Enforce exclusive use of funds for mandated objectives.
  2. Digital Transformation
    • Member registry & fund management via IBEX platform.
  3. Scale-up Self-Reliance
    • Collect in 2018 alone:
    – Buusii Qr 3  billionQr\,3\,\text{ billion}.
    – Gumaata Qr 1.5  billionQr\,1.5\,\text{ billion}.
    • Expand membership to 28 million28\,\text{million}.
    • Intensify agriculture on Hek 10,000Hek\,10,000, enter transport & agro-processing ventures.
  4. Infrastructure
    • Build standard warehouses at all administrative tiers.
  5. Human Capital
    • Train BG staff across levels; mainstream DRM & business skills.
  6. Policy: From 2018-end, no international relief actor should operate inside Oromia without local production back-up; region must prepare to meet any shock using own capacity.
21. Sectoral Responsibilities
  • President’s Office & Party: overall coordination, monitoring.
  • Land Bureau: identify & allocate farm & warehouse land; secure tenure certificates.
  • Agriculture Bureau: extension, PSNP graduation, natural-resource projects.
  • Education Bureau: enforce school-farm implementation.
  • Irrigation & Pastoral Bureau: rehabilitate schemes, organise water-user groups.
  • Urban Development & Housing: skill training & sheds for urban PSNP.
  • Social & Labour Affairs: link vulnerable groups to jobs/direct support.
  • Cooperative Agency: form watershed & saving cooperatives, arrange micro-finance.
  • Investment Office: reserve BG agricultural investment land.
  • ALL bureaus: provide timely, proportionate support and integrate BG targets in annual plans.
22. Ethical & Philosophical Take-aways
  • Aid that undermines dignity breeds dependency; internal solidarity restores sovereignty.
  • Buusaa Gonofaa embodies indigenous resilience – a model Africa can emulate (“Oro-Aid”, “Ethiopian Aid”).
  • Economic self-reliance is inseparable from cultural identity and political freedom.